Millie's Story

This is Millie’s story...
For almost 16 years she lay in a crib.
Wasting away from neglect.
Her body became stiff.
She has little reason to smile or laugh.
With wide eyes she watched the world around her.
Her world consisted of the same four walls and the ceiling.
Day in, day out.
Then one day, just before her 16th birthday, her world changed.
Two people came to the institution.
They were kind and they held her.
They weren’t scared aware by her emaciated frame and drugged state.
They didn’t walk away.
They saw their daughter.
On a beautiful day, her mama carried her out of the orphanage gates forever.
The sunlight was something she rarely saw.
She had to stay in a hospital in Kyiv for several weeks before she could finally come home.
Now she has many reasons to smile and to laugh.
She has found joy.
She still remembers many hard things.
But she is brave and she is strong.
And she is no longer fighting alone.
She has a family who love her.
They don’t know how she waited so long.
To them, she is perfect.